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CASA GRANDE, Ariz. – Real Salt Lake will play its first match of the 2014 preseason on Wednesday, taking on the RSL-Arizona Academy U-18’s at 11:00 a.m. MT at Grande Sports World.

Expect RSL Head Coach Jeff Cassar to run out a slew of players during the match; he’ll want to get a look at the Claret-and-Cobalt’s newcomers and youngsters, along with giving some time to some of the team’s older hands. Oh, and please don’t read anything into the eventual result. It’s just preseason, and any games – at least at this stage – are primarily training exercises.

RSL is in the midst of its second-straight double day, with one session in the books and another set for this afternoon. The Claret-and-Cobalt will get a well-deserved breather from two-a-days on Tuesday, when they'll only have one training session.

We’ll have a full match report, highlights and photos from the game on RealSaltLake.com on Wednesday. You can find all of our preseason coverage – including an up-to-date roster and schedule, as well as all of our written and video coverage – in RSL’s Preseason Central.

CASA GRANDE, Ariz. - The Day One excitement has worn off, the boots are starting to get worn in, and things are getting serious. Welcome to preseason in Casa Grande.

Real Salt Lake is in the midst of its first double day, currently in between sessions here at Grande Sports World. This morning’s practice was strenuous, with Head Coach Jeff Cassar emphasizing defensive responsibilities and tactical shape for about an hour before breaking up the squad for fitness testing.

RSL Strength and Conditioning Coach Dan Barlow divided the group by position for fitness testing, putting the team through a timed long-distance course. Defender Nat Borchers set the pace for the squad, burning through the two-kilometer track ahead of the rest of the team. Tony Beltran, Sebastian Velasquez, Jordan Allen, Olmes Garcia and Jeff Attinella also showed well.

The team will be back at it this afternoon, with Head Coach Jeff Cassar set to put the Claret-and-Cobalt through the second practice of the day at 4 p.m. MT.

CASA GRANDE, Ariz. - Real Salt Lake’s Jeff Cassar ran his first training session as Claret-and-Cobalt head coach on Saturday night, putting the team through its opening practice of 2014 with a light session at the RSL-Arizona Academy in Casa Grande, Ariz.

“It feels awesome, it really does,” Cassar said of getting his first practice under his belt. “Just to see the guys having fun, touching the ball, seeing smiles on their faces, that was the goal of this first session. Tomorrow it’ll get tough.”

RSL arrived in Casa Grande on Saturday afternoon, settling in here at Grande Sports World before kicking it around for about 90 minutes in the evening. The team will be back at it on Sunday with a double session.

Velasquez has had a wild ‘do since being drafted by RSL in 2012, with his trademark bleached Mohawk/rattail combo earning plenty of love – and a little consternation – across the Wasatch Front. His hair even earned him a nickname among the RSL faithful, with fans dubbing him Rufio in honor of a look-alike character from the early-90’s movie Hook.

Cassar and Ruff rapped for a few minutes, with RSL's new boss chatting about his hiring process, his desired style of play, his initial thoughts on the job and a few of his favorite things. Check out the full interview up above.

RSL's commentary team of Bill Riley and Brian Dunseth also chatted about RSL, breaking down a few things ahead of the team opening preseason camp on Saturday. Give their segment a watch here.

The Salt Lake Tribune’s Chris Kamrani wrote a very nice piece Thursday afternoon on RSL first round SuperDraft pick Ryan Neil. The piece is a great introduction to the Cal-Berkeley product, who projects as a defender for the Claret-and-Cobalt. Give it a read here.

Neil shared several interesting details with Kamrani, with one of the more interesting tidbits coming at the end of the piece. As Kamrani notes, Neil has ties to Utah, with his older sister having attended BYU, often going to RSL matches at Rio Tinto Stadium when she lived in in the Beehive State. The 22-year-old California-native visited his sister in Salt Lake on multiple occasions, and quickly became a fan.

Here’s the money quote, as told to Kamrani: “I’ve been to Salt Lake many times,” Neil said, “and I love it.”

And for those of you wondering, no, Neil is not a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. His sister, however, is LDS.

Real Salt Lake Analyst Brian Dunseth – a.k.a. the hardest working man in MLS – is in Philadelphia this week, where he’ll host the 2014 MLS SuperDraft from the Penn Convention Center on Thursday morning.

Dunny will be working the in-house crowd at the SuperDraft, but you’ll likely see at least a cameo or two of him on the ESPNews broadcast of the event, which will begin at 10 a.m. MT on Thursday. The SuperDraft consists of four rounds this year, with the first two rounds held Thursday in Philly and rounds three and four held next Tuesday via conference call.

Real Salt Lake has one pick on Thursday, with the Claret-and-Cobalt holding the 18th overall selection in the first round. RSL does not currently have a second round selection, but the team does have a pick in both the third and fourth rounds, owning the 53rd and 70th overall selections.

Make sure you tune-in to the SuperDraft on ESPNews on Thursday morning – and look for Dunny!